A 17-member Stakeholder/Confidential Committee has been assembled to interview two finalists as the search for Park Ridge-Niles School District 64’s new Superintendent of Schools moves to the next phase.

Working with its search consultants School Exec Connect, the D64 Board of Education at its February 25, 2019 meeting fine-tuned plans for the 17-person stakeholder group, which is expected to interview the final candidates on March 11 and 12 and provide written feedback to the Board prior to its interviews later those evenings.

The stakeholder committee includes representatives of the District’s three main employee groups: Park Ridge Education Association (PREA) President Jerry Mulvihill; Park Ridge Teacher Assistants Association (PRTAA) Vice President Anne Heneghan; and Support Staff Council (SSC) President Jason Borst.

In addition to identifying representatives from the District’s employee, administrators and parent organizations, the Board reserved five seats for parents of students from a mix of grade levels and participation in special education and the gifted program. The final two seats were reserved for community members who do not currently have a student enrolled in D64 or are employed by D64. All seven parent/community members must have been a resident of D64 for at least one year. The Board directed School Exec Connect to conduct a lottery from among the 110 online applications received for these seven spots.

Previously, the Board agreed that candidates for election to the D64 Board of Education on April 2 would participate only as observers during the stakeholder committee interviews. They include: Steven Blindauer; Sal Galati; Gareth Kennedy; Rebecca Little; Lisa Page; Denise Pearl; and Carol Sales. Current D64 Board member Tom Sotos, who is also running for re-election, will participate as a Board member in interviews later in the evening.

The D64 Board earlier agreed that all those involved in the search would hold candidate names confidential throughout the process. Therefore, all stakeholder committee members and Board election candidates will be required to sign a non-disclosure agreement in order to participate in the March 11 and 12 sessions.